I suspect I am not alone in welcoming spring and the eye candy provided largely in the form of flowering bulbs, shrubs and trees. The desire to bring some of that beauty inside is strong, and who would want to – indeed, who should – rebuff such appealing temptation?
The main issue I have with cut flowers and greenery, whether I buy them or get them from the yard, is that I don’t know how to display them well. Oh, sure, I can stick the pieces in a vase and spread them out, but that’s about the limit of my skill. In fact, I recall putting an arrangement in a parlour show some years ago. One of the judges commented, when discussing the overall show results, “This entry didn’t earn any points, because everything looks just a bit jumbled together.” Granted, my entries have improved over the years, but I still don’t know the fundamentals of making a decent arrangement.
The same certainly cannot be said for Pam Day, this month’s featured speaker at the Sooke Garden Club. For Pam it all started in the garden, where she worked alongside her father. She became a passionate gardener and started growing flowers long before she knew what to do with them in any design sense, aside from fashioning the flowerbeds. When she eventually realized that she had been a designer in one way or another for most of her life – “it all comes down to having a sense of order” – learning to design with flowers just seemed a natural progression.
That progression took her through the floral course at Algonquin College and on to a career that never saw her far from her beloved flowers. She worked as a floral designer in the florist retail environment for six years and then started her own small business in Ottawa, specializing in bridal and special event designs.
According to Pam, who now calls Sooke home, most people actually know what they like and what a well-designed arrangement looks like. The big question is how to put everything together to arrive at that point. This will be the focus of her talk, The Love of Flowers and the Art of Floral Design. Pam will discuss care of the flowers, basic mechanics for building a secure display, and some key principles of design. She will also demonstrate a common classic design, showing members how they can turn it into a showstopper for a special occasion or a prizewinner for a competition.
The evening will also feature a parlour show – we had 26 entries at the February show! – and contest potatoes will be available.
Please join us Wednesday, March 26, 7:30 p.m., at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church on Townsend Road. New members welcome. Annual fee $15.
For more information, email: sookegardenclub@yahoo.ca” sookegardenclub@yahoo.ca or phone Rose at 250-642-5509.
Contributed by Loretta Fritz